and swirl with the band's trademark shifts between 6/8 and 4/4 time.

At the same time, Muses leader Kristin Hersh has revisited the barren strength of her early solo work with The Grotto. The album showcases her inward poetics with acoustic guitar adorned only by violin and piano. The finely focused results are hushed and uneasy. As she sings in "Milk Street," "It's still a tragedy" -- but it's also a triumph.

BARRY WALTERS
(From RS 917, March 6, 2003)